TONY MOWBRAY knows what it is like to beat Chelsea.

The trouble is, it was a quarter of a century ago – and the Middlesbrough manager admits everything has changed in the intervening years.

And that is why he has every sympathy for Rafael Benitez, his opposite number in the dugout tonight and the man whose pain he is plotting to sharpen by knocking his side out of the FA Cup.

“I don’t want to get dragged into what Roman Abramovich does, but there is a big difference between the Chelsea side when I played against them and beat them in 1988 and the one of 2013 – and that’s only because of what he has brought to the club. It’s his club and his money,” said Mowbray.

“Football managers go into the job with their eyes open and they know what is expected of them at a club with the demands they have at Chelsea. It is too short term, because they are not trying to build teams.

“We have not got £100million to spend in one transfer window and we have to recruit different types of players, by gradually moving the club forward. At Chelsea, it is more of a short fix, where you can buy any number of players.

“I wouldn’t sit here and criticise that. I am sure the Chelsea fans have loved winning the Champions League by beating Barcelona over two legs, then Bayern Munich in the final.

“But it’s unfortunate what has happened to Rafa and you have to go back to the reasons. Go back to the Champions League semi-final a few seasons ago – it was Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea against Rafa’s Liverpool. They were two teams who you could not divide and it was decided on a controversial goal.

“However, the decision to take that job was Rafa’s. He has won leagues everywhere he has worked and the Champions League, and he is a good football man.

“I’ve been in his company and he loves to talk football and tactics and I have a lot of respect for him. It is a very tough job but he seems very professional.

“Every manager at times feels the wrath of supporters and you have to be very single-minded to be a manager in 2013 because of the rise of the social media. Everybody thinks they can do your job, but Rafa has shown he will just get on with trying to win games.

“In the eyes of some fans, whenever he loses it’s his fault and when he wins, nothing is said. But that’s what football managing is these days and you do need a thick skin.”

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich

Mowbray has hardly had the easiest time of late, with his team winning only one of their last nine games, but he is hoping the lure of a quarter-final at Manchester United will inspire them.

“We have beaten Sunderland this season and we were very unfortunate not to get the better of Swansea, so we have shown what we can do against Premier League sides,” he said.

“We will try to frustrate Chelsea and compete with them. We want to make it an uncomfortable night for them.

“Old Trafford is next for whoever wins and financially for us that is a huge bonus. Like any side, we also want to test ourselves against the best team in the country. If everything is equal they should beat us with the players they have got, but with the crowd behind us we will have a real go.”

Boro captain Rhys Williams will lead the team out tonight and while beating Chelsea will no doubt be his short-term aim, he has his eyes on a long-term goal – leading his twin brothers to the World Cup finals with Australia in less than two years’ time.

While Williams is a regular for the Socceroos, his 18-year-old brothers – Fulham winger Ryan and Aryn, currently at Burnley – have yet to wear the green-and-gold shirts.

Rhys said: “They are both good young players with great attitudes so they have got a chance of playing for Australia.”